


Happy

by WhaleTheFatDolphin



Category: Naruto
Genre: Canon Divergence, F/M, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-09
Updated: 2015-09-09
Packaged: 2018-04-19 21:24:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,497
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4761551
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhaleTheFatDolphin/pseuds/WhaleTheFatDolphin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Karin has always known about Sasuke’s devastations. Now that he’s looking to right his wrongdoings, he needs help in discovering what it means to be redeemed. In the process, he learns that he hasn’t always known about Karin’s devastations.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Happy

“Good job, I’m so proud of you for losing an arm,” Karin spat, clapping her hands sarcastically. Sasuke shot her a look but, as usual, he said nothing. The two were in a room at a hot spring inn. Karin was standing near the window that looked out to a thick forest. She didn’t look towards Sasuke; her red eyes were focused on the fluttering leaves of the trees. “Did you at least reconcile with your friend?”

There was a long pause as a small smile stretched across Sasuke’s lips. “Yeah, I did.”

“So what now? You’ve called on me to what? What else is there to do?” Karin asked, still not looking at Sasuke. Her arms were crossed. She was tense, building herself a wall between her and Sasuke. There was an iciness in her voice and it was so unlike her usual fire. Sasuke’s eyes flickered towards her

“I need you,” was all Sasuke could mutter at first. Karin’s eyes flitted towards him. Sasuke could swear they softened again but her eyes turned back to the window. But, for all he knew, they could just feel pity. He wasn’t good at feeling or noticing soft things anymore.

“... Yeah,” Karin said, defeated on what else to do, “I kind of guessed that.”

The air around them was heavy. It weighed down on his shoulders and his eyes had a hard time looking up from the ground. Yet, when he looked at Karin, he noticed that she was calm and refined. She wore a cloak similar to his own, with her usual clothing underneath. She didn’t look at him once. Sasuke idly wondered what was so interesting beyond the forest that Karin’s full attention was on it.

To Sasuke, there was so much to say. There were so many things he had to share. It was always as if Naruto knew and Naruto never cared. But, to tell someone on his own accord and to gauge their reaction accordingly, that’s something Sasuke’s been needing to do. He thought of telling the others, too. But, Suigetsu and Juugo weren’t exactly the best at understanding what makes someone tick. No one else understood.

No one else understood other than Karin.

But, Sasuke was never the best at saying things. How could he explain to Karin what he had in mind when he hardly knew himself? The repenting of his sins; that’s what he had called it at first. What did that mean? What did it mean to Sasuke? How does one repent their sins, especially of that magnitude? He had so many questions with no answers. He wasn’t sure how to begin explaining it all to Karin.

“Isn’t the whole point of yin and yang is that nothing’s all dark and nothing’s all bright?” Karin suddenly burst out. She unfolded her arms and placed one on her hip, her crimson eyes still looking out the window. “Yeah, sure whatever, the yin is mostly dark but there’s always light in it and the same goes with the yang. Things interconnect and what looks like opposites... well, they’re actually in need of each other.”

“What are you getting at?” Sasuke asked briskly.

“The truth is, Sasuke, you’re weren’t all dark before and you’re not all dark now. Everyone’s done some morally ambiguous things, all for what they thought was the greater good. Isn’t your brother a shining example of that? You thought what you were doing was right, so even that decision... it’s not all dark. I made my decisions and some of those weren’t in the best of mind, either,” Karin explained, though her voice made it sound more exasperated than it should have. It was then that her eyes finally rested on Sasuke. They were sharp and convicting, things that Sasuke was used to seeing in the red. But, he was right before. He did see a sort of softness in them.

Sasuke’s eyes never left Karin’s and for the first time in a long time, tears threatened to fall. His shoulders shuddered as he drew a sigh, but his sight never wavered. “I murdered my brother. It took all of me but I did it. I murdered someone close to my heart. I murdered someone I loved. Nothing changes that.”

“He also loved you, regardless of what you’ve done. Nothing changes that. You’ve almost killed Naruto and he still loves you. Nothing changes that, either. Sheesh, why do I even love you, you’re as boar-headed as Suigetsu!” she exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air. Certain words hung more than others. Karin refused to meet Sasuke’s eyes anymore; she looked back out the window towards the dancing leaves.

There was a long silence between the both of them. Karin had said too much. Sasuke had a lot to say but couldn’t say anything. She was as tense as ever, everything about her freezing up in stiff apprehension.

Her eyes were focused not at the forest. Instead, there was a small street that led out to the forest trail and two sisters were playing together. One was significantly older than the other. She often didn’t let anyone know what she was feeling, even if it was obvious.

Could it be true that she hid her feelings just as much as Sasuke did?

“Come look, Sasuke.”

“What?”

“Right  _now_.”

Sasuke didn’t need to be told twice. He didn’t hurry for her but he got up and peered out the window. At first, Sasuke’s eyes only settled on the view and the scenery.

“Do you see those two sisters? They remind me of how we used to be. You had an older brother that you always looked up to. If we went back in time, we’d see almost the exact same scene, right? My entire village burned to the ground. I’m sure Orochimaru would’ve told you. He and others... they always tell my story as if I was the only survivor of the fire. Truth is, I’m the only survivor alive right now. Two of us made it out of the fire.”

“‘Of us’?” he reiterated, his eyes never leaving the sisters.

“My little sister, Tsubame. I told you, I’ve had my fair share of decisions that weren’t necessarily right. Instead of saving dozens of lives, I chose instead to only save my sister. Their lives are on my hands but I never batted an eyelash. My sister’s always going to be more precious than them. In my mind, I made the right decision.”

Sasuke finally looked up once the words clicked. They resonated within his ears, echoing into the chasms of his mind that still shone with emotion.

“They always fancied my sister more. Her... prowess showed at an earlier age than mine did. They took their chance when I was 12, when they knew I wasn’t going to be around to protect her...” Karin spat out her words, chewing her cheek after each syllable, “I came home from the Chuunin Exams to a dead, gutted little sister. I thought that if I went, if I had gone and became stronger, I could protect her better. But, instead, she’s gone. She’s gone forever and I can’t get her back. At the time, it was the right decision... only it turned out to be one of my worst.”

Karin’s voice was harsh and angry at first, but it slowly turned helpless and hurt. It was rumoured that Sasuke had the best eyes in his generation, yet he couldn’t see this. He couldn’t see Karin for who she was. Loyal and protective. He couldn’t see...

“I only wanted her to be happy, you know?” she began, her voice cracking. Tears lined the corners of her eyes though they didn’t fall.

Before he knew it, Sasuke’s arms were around Karin. He remembered hugs. He remembered the warm embrace of his mother, although it seemed like an eternity ago. He knew how it made him feel better back then whenever something had made him upset. Even though it’s been an eternity, Sasuke still knew that hugs made him feel better. Karin’s body froze for just a moment; then, she visibly relaxed and hooked her arms around him.

Karin was right. He had a lot of darkness in him, but the road to redemption wasn’t going to be as steep and difficult as he made it seem. Because, hidden in all the darkness, there was light in him, too. It’s why he befriended Naruto and apologized to him. Why he saved Karin twice and apologized to her.

“I’m so proud of you,” Karin murmured though it was barely audible.

“I know. And... I love you, too.”

Again, Karin froze. Her eyes went wide and her face heated up to match the shade of her hair. She instantly pushed herself away from the embrace. “Y-You heard?! I didn’t mean it!” she stuttered out, her voice rising to a screech. Sasuke finally smiled, as bright as he used to, and pulled Karin back into a hug.


End file.
